"" (; "God be with our Suriname"), or "" ("Rise, countrymen" in Sranan Tongo), is the national anthem of Suriname. It has two verses: the first in Dutch and the second in Sranan Tongo.

History

The original version of the anthem was written by Cornelis Atses Hoekstra in 1893 and based on a 1876 melody by Johannes Corstianus de Puy. It was written to replace the old anthem "Wilhelmus". De Ziel was concerned about the negative nuance in the original and started to transform the anthem into a positive message. He combined this with a poem he wrote in Sranan Tongo on the death of Ronald Elwin Kappel. His anthem was unanimously approved by the Government of Suriname on 7 December 1959. De Ziel originally used a melody by Surinamese composer Johannes Helstone, however the government preferred the original 1876 melody.

!IPA transcription

!English translation

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|<poem>God be with our Suriname

May He elevate our lovely land

No matter how we came here together

We are dedicated to its soil

Working we keep in mind

Justice and truth will set free

All that is good to devote oneself to

Will give value to our land</poem>

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!Sranan Tongo verse

!IPA transcription

!English translation

!Dutch translation

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|<poem>Rise countrymen, rise!

The soil of Suriname is calling you.

Wherever our ancestors came from

We should take care of our country.

There is a fight to fight, we shall not be afraid.

God is our leader.

Our whole life until death,

We shall fight for Suriname.</poem>

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Notes

References

  • MP3 version